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Rehabbing Tiger rules himself out of U.S. Open

TIGER WOODS:The former world number one has been sidelined from competitive golf since late March after requiring treatment for a pinched nerve in his back that had troubled him for months, and was unable to compete at the Masters in April. Photo: Reuters

(Reuters) – Three-times champion Tiger Woods has ruled himself out of next month’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst in North Carolina as he recovers from back surgery, the second successive major championship he will miss this year.

The former world number one has been sidelined from competitive golf since late March after requiring treatment for a pinched nerve in his back that had troubled him for months, and was unable to compete at the Masters in April.

“Unfortunately, I won’t be there because I’m not yet physically able to play competitive golf,” Woods said in a statement on his website on Wednesday, referring to the June 12-15 U.S. Open.

“The U.S. Open is very important to me, and I know it’s going to be a great week. Despite missing the first two majors (this year), and several other important tournaments, I remain very optimistic about this year and my future.”

This will be the sixth major championship missed by Woods due to injury, and he remains stuck on his career tally of 14 wins, having not clinched one of golf’s blue riband events since the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines.

Woods has not set a timetable for his likely return and could possibly also miss the year’s third major, the July 17-20 British Open at Royal Liverpool in Hoylake, England.

The 38-year-old American has been increasingly plagued by injuries in recent seasons as the wear and tear of years on the tour have begun to take a toll.

He failed to finish the PGA Tour’s Honda Classic at Palm Beach Gardens in early March, quitting after 13 holes in his final round.

The American then tweaked his back again on the last day of the WGC-Cadillac Championship in Miami just one week later.

OPTED FOR SURGERY

Woods pulled out of the Mar. 20-23 Arnold Palmer Invitational, a key lead-up tournament he has won eight times, in the hope that he could play at the Masters before he opted to undergo surgery on March 31.

He said he risked further injury had he kept playing because of the repetitive motion from golf but that there should be no long-lasting effects from the surgery.

“It’s just because the nature of injuries that I’ve had before in the past,” Woods said earlier this year. “I’ve had knees and Achilles (injuries) and I’ve been through that. And I could play through those.

“But this one, I just can’t do it. Back injuries are no joke. When people say they’ve felt debilitated when their back hurts, I understand what that feels like.”

Woods’ lengthy history of injury began with a troublesome left knee, first operated on when he was a freshman at Stanford University in 1994. Three more operations on that knee have followed.

He has also suffered injuries to his ankle and neck, his right and left Achilles tendons and fractures in his leg, which he defiantly played through on the way to victory at the 2008 U.S. Open after a 19-hole playoff against Rocco Mediate.

Woods has missed two British Opens, one U.S. Open, one Masters and one PGA Championship since 2008 because of injuries, and will now add to that number next month.

He is a three-time winner of the year’s second major, having triumphed at the U.S. Open in 2000, 2002 and 2008.

NICKLAUS SAYS WOODS CAN STILL WIN A RECORD 19 MAJORS

Tiger Woods has endured a victory drought of almost six years at the majors but Jack Nicklaus remains convinced that the former world number one is capable of winning at least five more over the next decade, if he stays healthy.

Woods, who has been sidelined from competitive golf since late March because of back surgery, needs a further five wins in golf’s grand slam events to surpass the record 18 career majors piled up by Nicklaus, his childhood idol.

“If he’s healthy, I think Tiger’s got 10-plus years to play top quality tournament golf,” Nicklaus told reporters on Wednesday, on the eve of this week’s Memorial Tournament which he hosts in Dublin, Ohio.

“I’ve said many times, he’s got a little over 40 tournaments to play the major championships, he’s only got to win five to pass my record. As good a player as he is, I don’t think that should be a big deal.

“But then again he’s gotta do it. Plus he’s also got to be healthy to be able to do it,” said the 74-year-old American, who has long been known as the ‘Golden Bear.’

Woods, 38, clinched the most recent of his 14 major wins in the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, where he edged out fellow American Rocco Mediate after 19 extra holes.

He has since failed to add to that number, despite a few close calls along the way, and the aura of dominance he once enjoyed is a fading memory with the young guns of today holding no ‘Tiger’ fear.

“The first time that Tiger ever lost a tournament coming down the stretch was against Y.E. Yang,” Nicklaus said, referring to the 2009 PGA Championship where South Korean Yang Yong-eun stunningly overhauled Woods in the final round.

“It was the first time somebody challenged him and actually beat him. (Woods) will probably have more of those challenges because more young players are coming along. But that’s part of the game, and I think he expects that.”

Woods himself is still uncertain about his likely return to competitive golf as he continues to recover from treatment for a pinched nerve in his back that had troubled him for months.

He missed the Masters in April, after having surgery on March 31, and on Wednesday he ruled himself out of next month’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst, saying he was “not yet physically able to play competitive golf.”

That will be the sixth major championship missed by Woods due to injury, and there has to be some doubt over his fitness for the July 17-20 British Open at Royal Liverpool in Hoylake, England.

On Wednesday, Woods made sure that he contacted Nicklaus by telephone to apologize for not being to able to compete at the Memorial Tournament, an elite PGA Tour event he has won five times.

“It was a very, very nice call, wishing me well (with) the tournament, sorry he couldn’t be here,” Nicklaus said. “He said he’s doing well, progressing well and he’s looking forward to getting back into the game. He misses it.”

Asked if Woods had given him any details on his likely return to competitive golf, Nicklaus smiled: “I didn’t ask him because I knew I was going to talk to you guys.”